Underground mining, also called hard rock mining, relies on the excavation (i.e. digging) of substantially vertical and substantially horizontal galleries or tunnels, commonly called “shafts”. Elevators and lifts are used in vertical shafts while wagons are used in horizontal shafts for transport of ore material, equipment, and personnel.
A commercially exploitable ore body oftentimes follows geological formations that may be at shallow angles, for example at 45 degrees or less from horizontal. Access to these formations using only horizontal and/or vertical shafts is not efficient. There are currently no available techniques and equipment capable of operating in mine shafts dug at shallow angles.
Therefore, there is a need for technologies capable of economically exploiting ore bodies at shallow angles. There are also needs for improvements to existing methods of digging underground tunnels at shallow angles, for other applications.